Snowstorm
by creating-not-finding
Summary: Part of Execute week on tumblr. Dick and Barbara patrol Gotham during a storm. DickBabs


"Meteorologists are calling this one of the worst storms the East Coast has seen since the organized attacks of a team of ice villains four years ago. Expectations are it will last for the duration of the weekend."

Dick glanced up from the computer where he was working, his eyes fixing on the wind-streaked face of Kat Dunnings, intrepid reporter for Channel 6, from the broadcast on the TV. Kat flashed her signature grin at the camera, a valiant effort that nonetheless fell a little short as a powerful gust of wind almost knocked her off her feet. Dick winced a little in sympathy—he'd known Kat since he was a kid and the reporter had grown on him over the years. Granted, she only knew him as Robin—and now Nightwing—since most of their encounters had occurred after he and tune team had prevented a disaster or something of the sort.

"Most roads and bridges have been shut down for safety reasons," Kat was saying, "and police and fire departments are strongly encouraging families to bunker down and remain indoors. We now go to Jim Porter in Metropolis for an update."

Dick returned to his work, hacking into the GCPD database and scanning for the latest updates. Gotham seemed pretty quiet so far, but he knew it wouldn't last for long. The chilly weather might keep most families inside, but he could think of one or two of Batman's rogues who were particularly suited for the cold.

The sound of a computer alert interrupted his thoughts, and he glanced up at an adjacent screen just in time to see Bruce's cowl covered face appear on the monitor. Dick felt himself tense instantly from just the sight of him. It had been a few weeks since he'd officially retired from being the Boy Wonder, although he supposed 'quit' would be the more accurate term. He hadn't exactly left on the best of terms, and although he and Bruce managed to be civil to each other while coordinating missions, the tension between them was still pretty obvious.

"Dick," Bruce intoned by way of greeting. Dick noticed he hadn't used his codename, such a blatant disregard for protocol that was so out of character for

Batman he almost started in surprise. Was it really so hard for him to call him 'Nightwing'? "What's the team's current status?"

"Alpha squad is currently deployed with Kaldur," Dick answered, deciding to let the older man's transgression slide...for the moment. "I've got the rookies here at headquarters, currently inactive. Everyone except for Robin, that is, who I'm assuming is with you."

Dick thought he saw a brief flicker of tension in the lines around Bruce's mouth but the sign of emotion was gone almost as soon as it had appeared. Bruce was good at doing that.

"Jason is with me," he said in confirmation. _Must really be a secure line_, Dick thought. Bruce was dropping names left and right. "Unfortunately, the League needs me elsewhere. I have to leave Gotham and Robin doesn't have the experience to operate alone. I...you're needed here. To protect the city."

_To babysit_, Dick thought bitterly. It wasn't that he minded working with Jason, but the thought of running errands for Bruce after everything they'd been through recently really rubbed him the wrong way. To top it off, the man couldn't even ask him outright. He'd had to go and drag up moral obligations, remind him of his "duty". Unfortunately for Dick, moral obligations were kind of his weakness.

"I'll...be there in ten minutes," he replied to Bruce, already starting to rise, to go find Beast Boy and Mal and tell them where he was going—

"Wait," Bruce's authoritative voice stopped him cold. Even after everything that had happened, it still had that power over him. Dick turned back to the screen expectantly. "Take Batgirl," Bruce said shortly. Then the screen went black.

Leaving Dick to wonder perplexedly what Bruce was thinking. Did he think it would be awkward for the former Boy Robin and the current one to work together alone? He supposed he shouldn't be that surprised, though. He knew how highly Bruce thought of his best friend, even if she didn't seem to believe that herself. After all, it had been a year since Barbara had adopted a cowl of her own and taken to the streets of Gotham as Batgirl. Bruce hadn't liked the idea then, but he hadn't stopped her, much to Dick's initial dismay. As much as he hated to admit it, Bruce must have seen immediately what it took Dick months to realize—Barbara was a natural. The fear for his friend that he had felt at first, fear that she would get hurt, quickly faded into awe as he watched Barbara improve at a rapid pace. After only six months into her career, the League had extended her an invitation to the team, as per Batman's request.

Now she was an invaluable asset to their team, providing them with a tactical strategist, hand-to-hand fighter, and computer hacker almost rival to him in skill. (Almost).

Barbara had only been on the team for a few months, but she'd more than proven herself on missions. In fact, in Dick's opinion she was ready to be moved to Beta squad, if not Alpha. But since the rest of the team knew that Nightwing and Batgirl were friends (although not all of them knew Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon were, too) his opinion was taken with a grain of salt.

Maybe Bruce was angling to get Barbara more field experience. Or maybe he just knew that if Gotham needed protection, he couldn't do much to keep Barbara away anyway. She could be just as hard-headed as him sometimes.

It was one of the things Dick liked best about her.

So there was a small smile on his face as he waited patiently outside her room for her to suit up, and he couldn't seem to make himself stop, even when she shot him a weird look upon exiting and told him he looked like a creepy stalker.

A few moments later, the pair of them were stepping out of the Zeta tubes on the

Gotham end. For a few moments, they were pressed against each other tightly while Barbara uttered curses trying to open the door to the telephone booth, which had frozen shut. He had to admit he felt a little disappointed as she finally managed to shove it open, stepping out into the snow filled alley.

An icy wind greeted them, and he made a mental note to thank Lucius Fox the next time he saw him for equipping his new suit with state-of-the-art thermals. He saw Barbara shiver briefly and wondered if she had remembered to add thermals to her suit, too, but before he could ask she was off, launching herself onto the nearest fire escape and hoisting herself swiftly over the edge and onto the roof. Dick watched her go, momentarily forgetting how to move his feet, but then he quickly followed suit.

Soon they were sprinting across the rooftop side by side, their boots making tracks in the thick layers of snow. Barbara shot a quick look at him, and Dick caught the twinkle of a challenge in her eye. Then she suddenly shot in front of him, diving over the edge of the roof as gracefully as an Olympic swimmer would dive into a pool. She shot out a grappling hook in midair and called back over her shoulder, "Well? You gonna try to keep up or not?"

Dick felt himself grinning like an idiot as he leaped after her without a moment's hesitation. And then they were off chasing each other through the Gotham skyline in a game of tag no one else could match.

They were both breathing quickly as they at last came to a halt on the top of the Justice Department building, their breath coming in and out in plumes, mingling together in the frigid night air.

Barbara flashed him a grin. "You're getting slow in your old age, Nightwing."

"Is that what you're telling yourself, BG?" he grinned back, his voice tight with restrained laughter. This was what he needed, he realized suddenly—a night with Barbara, patrolling Gotham. Just like old times.

Barbara rolled her eyes at his response but he saw them glimmering with mirth, sparkling from beneath her mask like two freshly cut sapphires. Her cheeks were the same rosy hue as her hair, he noticed suddenly.

And just like that he found himself wondering when his best friend had gotten so beautiful.

The thought made him blush and he quickly averted his gaze, trying to concentrate on their watch. But the city laid out before them was quiet—peaceful even, although that was a word no one in their right mind would ever assign to Gotham.

Next to him, Barbara shifted her weight so that her legs were hanging over the edge of the building. Dangling their feet above a twenty-story drop would scare most girls. But Barbara wasn't 'most girls'.

Dick sighed and leaned back, too, relaxing into a more comfortable position. Snow had started falling, spiraling down like flecks of glitter, softly settling on their hair and faces. They watched it fall for a few moments, each quietly soaking in the sight of their city blanketed in white.

Then suddenly, without warning, Barbara leaned her head onto his shoulder, folding herself neatly into his side. Her soft, thick hair brushed against the skin of his cheek, and as she gave a small sigh her breath tickled his neck. Dick felt himself freeze for a moment, caught off guard by the sudden proximity. They had always been comfortable around each other, but the usually most physical contact Barbara initiated was a killer uppercut during sparring.

Dick's pulse had quickened substantially and he was having a difficult time breathing normally, like he was suddenly twelve years old again and starting to notice girls for the first time.

Of course, the first girl he'd ever noticed that way had been Barbara. So maybe that explained things.

Soon—too soon—Barbara broke the silence. "Well," she said, "As nice as this is, I think we have a certain loud, impetuous, teen crime-fighter waiting for us back at the manor."

Barbara got to her feet before he could reply—or protest, he wasn't sure which one—and fired her grappling gun towards the nearest window-ledge. The snow was falling even thicker now, and an icy wind was starting to chill the tops of the rooftops. Barbara's hair billowed back with the sudden gust and her cape was swept over her shoulders. He watched as she smiled broadly into the wind, heard her sudden, beautiful laugh.

And just like that, he forgot they were in the middle of the biggest snowstorm in four years.

He could no longer feel the cold.


End file.
